“Uh, you mean, when he caughtyoukissingme.”
I took a deep breath and tried to remember I was revealing all this to get rid of Parker and it would all be over soon.
“When my dad caughtuskissing,” I continued, “he decided I wasn’t serious about hockey and used it as an excuse to ban me for life.”
“For life?” Parker looked disgusted. “Are you serious?”
“Yes.”
“That’s bullshit.”
“Of course it is.” I shrugged. “But it doesn’t matter. The point is, even if I wanted to try out for the Devils, there’s no way my dad would ever allow me to play.”
Parker’s blue eyes watched me closely, and he shook his head. “I didn’t realize. I thought I was the only one to get in trouble.”
“I wish.”
“If I’d known, I…” His voice was surprisingly soft, and as he stared into my eyes a myriad of thoughts flashed across his gaze. “I guess we both kind of screwed each other that day.”
It was probably as close to an apology as I’d ever get from him.
“But now we’ve got a chance to fix it.” He stepped closer and the energy in his voice returned. “I can help you get back on the ice, and you can help me stop my senior year of hockey going to shit. Once we’ve both got what we want, we can go straight back to hating each other.”
“You think I can just stop hating you?”
He rolled his eyes. “If it means you get to play hockey again, I’m sure you can suck it up. We’ll just call a truce for a while.”
“You’re forgetting there’s still the issue of my dad, Parker.”
“We desperately need a new goalie. If he could see you play, I know he’ll change his mind. He’ll have to.”
“Youhaven’t even seen me play.”
“I saw enough at camp to know you’re good. To know you’ve got more potential than any other goalie at Ransom High. Or was that a fluke?”
“Well, you did tell me you missed a shot on purpose that day.”
“I say a lot of things.” He grinned at the memory and my glare intensified.
“No,” I said firmly. “It wasn’t a fluke.”
“Then what are we waiting for?”
“I’mnotinterested.”
His smile grew and his blue eyes started to sparkle, like hesensed victory was close. Like he could see right through me. “Look, I know we got off to a rocky start.”
“That’s putting it mildly.”
“And two days ago, I could not have imagined we’d be having this conversation. But you’re talented. We just need your dad to see it too. Don’t youwantto play again?”
I hated how his words struck at something deep inside me. I’d spent my whole life dreaming of playing for a real hockey team, but I’d given up hope these last few years. Parker was making it all feel possible again.
“You don’t know my dad. I’d need to try out for the team, and if he sees my name on the list, he’ll probably cancel the whole thing. I’m sorry, Parker, this just isn’t going to happen—”
“Parker?” The door opened and my sisters both squealed from behind me. I hadn’t even realized they were there.
“We’re not afraid of you!” Skye shouted.
